Rotating tires
Thread Starter
Advanced
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 76
Likes: 0
From: Jacksonville NC
Rotating tires
I've heard lots of horror stories about rotating tires across a car because it reverses the normal rotation of the tire. Is there anything to this? (Assuming, of course, that the tires are in fact unidirectional!)
I'm asking because I keep wearing out the outside of the left front tire. No, it's not an alignment problem. See, there's this hard right turn on the way to work at the bottom of a hill. There are no houses in the area, and there's a clear view through the turn, so I tend to punch it through there. Due to the turn and the hill, all the weight shifts to the left side and the nose pushes out, sliding towards the left side of the road. It's great fun but hard on the outside of the left front tire.
So I'm wandering about rotating the front tires across. Bad idea?
I'm asking because I keep wearing out the outside of the left front tire. No, it's not an alignment problem. See, there's this hard right turn on the way to work at the bottom of a hill. There are no houses in the area, and there's a clear view through the turn, so I tend to punch it through there. Due to the turn and the hill, all the weight shifts to the left side and the nose pushes out, sliding towards the left side of the road. It's great fun but hard on the outside of the left front tire.
So I'm wandering about rotating the front tires across. Bad idea?
Safety Car
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 4,971
Likes: 9
From: The reason time exists is so everything doesn't happen at once
The general rule with radial tires is not to switch sides, even with non-unidirectional. You can "rotate" them by switching the right front and rear and the left front and rear (assuming front and rear are the same size). But you shouldn't put a tire from the right side of the car on the left side unless you remove it from the wheel and mount it "inside out" on the other side of the car.
Team Owner
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 22,293
Likes: 207
From: Sussex,Wi
2023 Corvette of the Year Finalist - Unmodified
2022 C3 of the Year Winner - Unmodified
The general rule with radial tires is not to switch sides, even with non-unidirectional. You can "rotate" them by switching the right front and rear and the left front and rear (assuming front and rear are the same size). But you shouldn't put a tire from the right side of the car on the left side unless you remove it from the wheel and mount it "inside out" on the other side of the car.
Not true of Today's tires.
Unless you have a directional tire (which is clearly labeled on the tire sidewall) todays' tecnology allows tires to rotate in ether direction.
Now, as far as most current corvette tires, they are directional.
My wife's 2004 Chrysler van does recommend switching rotation directions in the owner's manual, and I've done it without any problems.
Last edited by mikeb; Mar 2, 2007 at 08:20 PM.
Safety Car
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 4,971
Likes: 9
From: The reason time exists is so everything doesn't happen at once
This was the case with the old steel belted radials of the 70s and 80s.
Not true of Today's tires.
Unless you have a directional tire (which is clearly labeled on the tire sidewall) todays' tecnology allows tires to rotate in ether direction.
Now, as far as most current corvette tires, they are directional.
My wife's 2004 Chrysler van does recommend switching rotation directions in the owner's manual, and I've done it without any problems.
Not true of Today's tires.
Unless you have a directional tire (which is clearly labeled on the tire sidewall) todays' tecnology allows tires to rotate in ether direction.
Now, as far as most current corvette tires, they are directional.
My wife's 2004 Chrysler van does recommend switching rotation directions in the owner's manual, and I've done it without any problems.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 2,954
Likes: 2
From: Obama=death for America
The "new" theory as to rotating tires is as follows:
If the car is front wheel drive, do the following:
The front wheels remain on the side they're on and are simply moved back. Ex. - the LF tire is moved back to the LR side. The rear tires are crossed and go forward. Ex. - the LR tire is moved to the RF side.
If your car is rear or 4-wheel drive, do the following:
The rear wheels are simply moved forward. Ex. - the LR tire is moved to the LF side. The tires in the front are crossed to the rear side. Ex. - The LF tire is moved to the RR side.
Obviously, this only applies to tires of the same size. There are some tires out there that cannot be rotated even if the sizes are all the same. Ex. - Goodyear Aquatreads are directional and cannot be rotated. These tires have an arrow on them pointing in the direction they MUST follow.
If the car is front wheel drive, do the following:
The front wheels remain on the side they're on and are simply moved back. Ex. - the LF tire is moved back to the LR side. The rear tires are crossed and go forward. Ex. - the LR tire is moved to the RF side.
If your car is rear or 4-wheel drive, do the following:
The rear wheels are simply moved forward. Ex. - the LR tire is moved to the LF side. The tires in the front are crossed to the rear side. Ex. - The LF tire is moved to the RR side.
Obviously, this only applies to tires of the same size. There are some tires out there that cannot be rotated even if the sizes are all the same. Ex. - Goodyear Aquatreads are directional and cannot be rotated. These tires have an arrow on them pointing in the direction they MUST follow.
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
10 Reasons the C6 Z06 is Still A Performance Benchmark After 20 Years
Joe Kucinski
How Much Horsepower Every Corvette Engine "LOST" in 1972
Joe Kucinski
Top 10 DOs and DON'Ts for Protecting Your Convertible Top!
Michael S. Palmer
Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!
Joe Kucinski
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter
Joe Kucinski
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvette Engines RANKED by Peak Torque (70+ Years of Muscle!)
Joe Kucinski
Corvette ZR1X Will Be Pacing the Indy 500, And Could Probably Race, Too!
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvettes Coming to Mecum Indy 2026!
Brett Foote
Team Owner
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 24,337
Likes: 25
From: San Diego , CA Double Yellow DirtBags 1985..Z51..6-speed
Elite Torch Red Member
Joined: Sep 1999
Posts: 57,805
Likes: 23
From: Exit 89 GSP,Lakewood,NJ The Land Of Mojo
Cental/South NJ Events Coordinator
CI 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12 Vet
CI-II Burnout & Drag Champ
St. Jude Donor '03-'04-'05-'06-'07
Switching from side to side could have other effects, one being that the wheel (unless it's a non directional) will be facing the wrong way and that can cause brake cooling issues.
There is only one way I rotate my tires, by doing a burnout!
There is only one way I rotate my tires, by doing a burnout!
Pro
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 723
Likes: 0
From: Nashville Tennessee
Also trail brake going into the turn and get the car rotating a bit, then nail it and slide the rear on the way out. Oversteer is much more fun than understeer. (Don't forget to turn off the ASR)
